End the annual charades

IT'S THAT time of the year again. Hordes of government diplomats, civil society and academics have headed to discuss climate change. This time, the UN Conference of the Parties (coP30) is in Belém, a Brazilian city on the edge of the Amazonian rainforest.

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Then in Delhi and its surrounding areas, the air has turned foul, and citizens are struggling to breathe.

This year, as always, the news on climate change is grim. A UN report says global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise inexorably; the world is on course to breach the guardrail of 1.5°C temperature rise by the early 2030s. This is devastatingly bad news as even with a 1.2°C temperature rise, catastrophic extreme events are hitting just about every part of the world. But this news is now so predictable that we barely hear it. This is when we can literally see the climate impacts in our daily lives. The UN meeting has gradually turned into nothing more than an "event"-a place to network, espouse, and hold forth; it is no longer about holding governments to account.

Then as winter approaches north India, the winds die down; cold air settles close to the ground. Pollution stings our eyes and makes them burn; our lungs protest. For a few months, like clockwork, the media makes pollution top news; politicians trade blame; and people watch the drama with disgust. With little action the rest of the year, pollutant levels rise, year after year.